The Great Impersonation is a mystery set in duplicity and compounded by international espionage.
In German West Africa around 1910, Everard Dominey, a gone-to-seed Englishman whose only asset is fluent German, runs into a school mate, now a German commander. The two had always looked remarkably alike.
Von Ragastein has been exiled by the Kaiser for killing his lover’s husband. Dominey is self-exiled after a fight that left his wife unbalanced, threatening to kill him, and the defeated opponent missing, believed murdered.
Von Ragastein decides to kill Dominey and assume his identify.
Shortly thereafter, a man calling himself Everard Dominey arrives in England. He’s rich, abstemious, and highly principled—a miraculously changed man.
This new Dominey takes up life as an English lord. Only a German-born colleague knows Dominey is being planted to provide political intelligence when Germany attacks England.
The plot quickly gets complicated as Dominey is recognized by his former lover while Lady Dominey refuses to recognize him as her husband.
The story gets increasingly murky as Dominey gets involved in the discussions about whether the German pre-1914 military build-up means England should prepare for war.
Despite the corny look-alike plot hook, E. Phillips Oppenheim pulls off a clever and sophisticated mystery that will keep readers intrigued to the last page.
The Great Impersonationby E. Phillips Oppenheim
1920 bestseller #8 Project Gutenberg ebook #1484 My grade: B+
© 2010 Linda Gorton Aragoni
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John Gamble pointed me in your direction … looks like I’ll enjoy this blog, as I do a very similar thing. (Indeed, I look at THE GREAT IMPERSONATION here: http://rrhorton.blogspot.com/2015/03/old-bestsellers-great-impersonation-by.html) … My blog is not quite so well organized nor disciplined: I largely read what I find in antique stores!
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I’m delighted to encounter another reader of old books. As I’m looking forward to finishing my self-appointed task of reading and reviewing all the bestsellers of 1900-1969, I’ve been thinking I might go back and dig out some info on the authors and film versions of novels. I’ve not done much of that; having your blog as a source to link to could be very handy! Happy reading!
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